Disaster Archives

A Texas parish keeps faith after a tornado destroys the church

Church in the US
May 13, 2017

A tornado on April 29 destroyed the parish church of St. John the Evangelist in Emory, Texas. The next day, they held Mass in the parish parking lot with 200 people attending. They offered it in thanksgiving that nobody in the parish was seriously injured.

Haitians worship among devastation caused by hurricane

Associated Press, Global Church
October 10, 2016

Survivors of Hurricane Matthew put on their Sunday finest and picked their way through downed power lines to sing praise and pray in ruined churches, while desperation grew in other parts of devastated Haiti and international rescue efforts began ramping up.

Pope Francis writes Haiti to express sorrow, prayer

Vatican
October 7, 2016

As Hurricane Matthew pounds Haiti, leaving more than 300 dead and thousands injured, Pope Francis has written to console those who’ve lost a loved one, assuring Haiti of his prayers and spiritual closeness, and entrusting the country to the protection of Mary.

Hurricane help in Haiti slowed by blocked roads, floods, outages

Catholic News Service, Global Church
October 7, 2016

First responders and NGO aid workers in Haiti are assessing the damage from Hurricane Matthew even as they scrambled to deliver food, water and shelter materials to communities isolated by washed-out bridges and blocked roads.

Don’t turn God into a scapegoat, bishop tells quake victims

Catholic News Service, Global Church
September 2, 2016

The bishop of a Catholic diocese in Italy recently struck by a devastating earthquake has told his people that when such inexplicable tragedy strikes, and despite the temptation to want someone to blame, it’s not the right response to turn God into a scapegoat for suffering.

Bishop says Pope Francis was jolted awake by Italy’s deadly quake

Associated Press, Global Church
August 30, 2016

Bishop Domenico Pompili has told Corriere della Sera newspaper that Pope Francis called him three times last Wednesday, first at 7 a.m., 3 1/2 hours after the quake struck. He said Francis was especially concerned about the children caught up in the disaster.